A fading Australia will need to create history for a most unlikely Test and series victory as England continued to take the fifth and final Test away from the tourists at the Oval on Saturday.
England were 9/389 from 80 overs at stumps on day three. They lead by 377, more than any team has scored batting last to win during 143 years of Test cricket at the famous south London ground, with two days to play.
England’s Mark Wood plays a ball bowled by Australia’s Todd Murphy and is caught out by Mitchell Marsh. Credit:
If there is one tiny consolation for the Australians it’s that no England player managed a century, and young spinner Todd Murphy (3/110) snared England’s two best batsmen. Murphy bowled top scorer Joe Root for 91 with a ball that turned and deceiving skipper Ben Stokes (42) in the air to have him caught at mid-on.
The best run chase at the Oval was England’s 9/263 to scramble home by one wicket against Australia in 1902, and Australia’s most successful fourth innings at the ground was 5/242 when Paul Sheahan and Rod Marsh guided the visitors home to level the series 2-2.
Australia’s best chase in England is 3/404 at Headingley in 1948, when Arthur Morris made 182 and Don Bradman was unbeaten on 173. Next is the 8/282 Australia ran down at Edgbaston in the first Test of this series, thanks to an unbeaten 55-run partnership between captain Pat Cummins and the now invalided Nathan Lyon.
The most likely result of this series is also 2-2, which would be a remarkable comeback from England given they went 2-0 after narrow losses in the first two Tests before scrambling home by three wickets at Headingley.
Australia may yet produce a batting miracle against current trends to secure a 3-1 series victory, or it may rain for two days despite a reasonable forecast, which would leave the series 2-1. Either way it would be Australia’s first series victory in England for 22 years, but both scenarios appear remote.
As the holder of the Ashes Australia will retain them following the washout in Manchester, but England have played the better cricket for much of the time, particularly since Nathan Lyon went down during the second Test with a serious calf injury and was ruled out of the series.
Less than two months ago Australia beat India at the Oval by 208 runs in the World Test championship final. Maybe six Tests in eight weeks, squeezed in as they are between the ever-expanding IPL and England’s hybrid Hundred, are beyond even primed and pampered modern-day professionals.
Third time’s a charm: Starc sends Bairstow on his way.Credit: Reuters
Poor in the field on the opening day of this Test, substandard with the bat on day two and now dreadful with the new ball on the third day with confusing fields, it was like Australia were continuing on from the fourth-Test Bazball mauling their bowlers received in Manchester before almost two days of rain forced a draw.
Whatever the result of this Test, there needs to be a thorough review of the tactics and their execution by captain Pat Cummins and coach Andrew McDonald as Australia unravelled in the face of Bazball later in this series.
As strange as it may sound given the way Bazball has increasingly dominated this series once England started to drag more responsibility into their stroke play, Australia’s biggest problem has actually been their batting. There are numerous instances where Australia’s batsmen have made starts but failed to press on for match-winning scores.
David Warner is the worst offender with six scores over 20 but just one half century. If the 36-year-old is unable to produce something as spectacular as his Boxing Day Test double century, his one shining light during the past 18 months, then this Test is surely the end of the road.
England’s Joe Root put in a strong effort, posting 90 runs.Credit:
Steve Smith, who made 774 runs at 110 from four Tests in England during 2019, is currently averaging 35 in this series along with Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne.
Tellingly, England have six of the seven top run scores in this series following Mark Bairstow’s heroics in the past two Tests, 99 not out and then 78 on Saturday. Usman Khawaja the only Australian currently in that group. This may all change over the next day or two given Australia have one more chance to bat in the series, but it is a worrying indicator given it’s just 18 months since Australia flogged England 4-0 in Australia.
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